Drop foot is characterized by an insufficient control to check plantarflexion, inversion and/or eversion of the foot while walking. Consequentially, a victim suffering from drop foot walks with the toe of an affected foot dragging along the ground. Further, the affected foot may twist inversionally or eversionally. Either or both symptoms provide a sufferer of drop foot with an embarrassing and unsafe gait. Generally, drop foot is incurred by stroke victims, multiple sclerosis patients and/or those suffering from neurological, muscular and/or orthopedic pathological conditions. Victims of any of these pathological conditions can be especially prone to medical complications which may result from a fall caused by tripping due to the drop foot stride.
Drop-foot sufferers can greatly improve their gait and safety by utilizing an ankle-foot orthosis. These devices are designed to mechanically limit the plantarflexional range of motion in the affected foot to something approaching normal. Rehabilitation programs include the use of these devices to assist the patient in developing as near normal gait as possible and to minimize the social impact the pathology imposes on the patient's mobility. Such devices may provide, in addition to controlling runaway plantarflexion, sufficient torsional rigidity to prevent inversion and/or eversion of the foot. The devices may also be comfortable to wear, easy to apply and use, affordable, inconspicuous, fully adjustable to the user's particular physiology, and may be used with a wide range of conventional off-the-shelf footwear styles.